In small-town Molalla, residents pull together for version of 'Biggest Loser'

Andrew Burton/The OregonianChristina Youngren reacts after seeing her weight at the Molalla Adult Community Center Thursday night. Youngren was named "Molalla's Biggest Loser" after trimming 62.8 pounds in 12 weeks.

MOLALLA – Christina Youngren wrestled with her weight for more than a decade, reaching a peak of 244 pounds. Then, in the past 12 weeks, she shed 63 of those, thanks to a program designed by two Molalla women and a small-town community that rose to the occasion around a unifying cause: slimming down.

In a nod to "The Biggest Loser," personal trainer Lara McLaughlin and massage therapist Dani Clifton, both of Molalla, created a locally inspired version of NBC's weight loss competition show.

They called the project "Molalla's Biggest Loser," but they redesigned the approach to be healthier and more supportive.

"It makes for good programming, but it's not always good for health," Clifton, 41, said about the reality TV program. "I've always watched it with a critical eye."

Proof of the success of their approach came Thursday night, at the final weigh-in of the three-month program. The participants' goal was to shed one ton of flab, 2,000 pounds. They came two hundred pounds short.

Volunteers Hendy Appleton and Andrew McLaughlin sat with laptops in the Molalla Adult Community Center as some 70 people formed two lines, one for those who treated the program as a competition for a $6,000 cash prize, raised by themselves, and one for those who set individual goals.

After kicking off his canvas sandals and removing his hoodie, David Wales, 28, of Colton stepped onto the scale with an air of accomplishment. He lost 28 pounds.

"It feels great," Wales said. "Everybody was behind you for this, keeping you and pushing you. It's the community that made the difference for us."

Andrew Burton/The OregonianJulie Harris, of Molalla, checks her weight and visceral body fat during the
final weigh-in at "Molalla's Biggest Loser." Over two dozen local businesses coalesced around the some 80 participants who completed the three-month program.

Amid high-fives and effusive hugs, Wayne Dillinger,45, weighed in and then sat down with his family. Dillinger said he was so overweight a few months ago that just walking across a parking lot left him exhausted. Now he is 32 pounds lighter.

"Throughout the whole thing it felt like people really cared," said Dillinger, who owns a towing company in Molalla. "I'd love to do it again."

From the beginning, the community of 7,800 showed enthusiasm.

During the winter, McLaughlin and Clifton spread word around town and then held a kickoff reception in April. They expected about 50 participants, but more than 200 showed up to the first weigh-in.

"We looked at each other and said, 'Wow, we'll be reaching our goal of 2,000 pounds ... in no time," said McLaughlin, 39. "It could have been a disaster with that many people, but it wasn't because the excitement was sky-rocket high."

About half of the participants who signed up in April stuck with the program for the entire three months, buttressed by a supportive local community.

"Molalla's Biggest Loser" bragged of nearly two dozen local sponsors and business partners, from restaurants, the aquatic center, a local printing shop, even Molalla's bowling center, which during the competition changed its welcoming sign to: "Molalla's Biggest Losers eat and play here."

"It was an educational forum for people," Dewar said. "And it was great to see everyone pull together." One participant, Mary Robertson, said she shaved 15 pounds during the three months.

"I've lived in Molalla all my life and I've never seen anything like this," said Robertson, 56, an administrative assistant at City Hall. "It's like you go to the gym and say, 'Hey, how are you? I see you all the time.' It's a new positive vibe in town."

Andrew Burton/The OregonianJudy
Nuffer reacts to her slimmer weight at the final weigh-in of "Molalla's
Biggest Loser." About half of the 200 participants who signed in April
completed the program Thursday night.

Jill Schmitz,50, owner of Jill's Hitchin' Post Cafe, hung a sign in her storefront advertising her partnership with "Molalla's Biggest Loser." She said she added special items to her menu for participants and served about 30 of them a week.

"This thing really surprised me," Schmitz said. "There's a lot of tell-it-like-it-is folks in this town, but so many people got behind the 'Biggest Loser' here. It was like a big family."

McLaughlin and Clifton created a Facebook discussion page where weekly food journaling assignments were posted and participants could share stories. In public, participants could be spotted from their "MBL" yellow and orange bracelets, like the once-ubiquitous Livestrong bands.

Nine weeks into the program, Tracy Elbert, who lost 18 pounds, received inspiring news about her health. Her blood pressure had been "off the charts," and she expected to take medication for the rest of her life.

That changed in June.

"The doctor said point-blank that we can take you off," she said. "These gals came to town and brought everyone off the couches. It got me thinking, 'Wow, there's a lot of people just like me."

As people heard stories such as Elbert's, the sense of community grew.

"Every week I'd hear people say, 'Oh, you live just down the road from me.' I think this brought folks out of the woodwork a little bit," Clifton said.

Youngren, the mother of two who lost more than 60 pounds to win the $6,000 cash prize, said she was inspired most by her Zumba class, a kind of cardio-dance routine with a hip-hop pulse. "I didn't even know what Zumba was before this," she said. "Now I'm doing it four times a week."

She said she plans to continue exercising with Molalla-area residents she met through "Biggest Loser" and hopes to harness the Facebook group to meet more exercise partners.

"When you decide to do it, your mind just kicks in and you go for it," Youngren said. "I have aches and pains, but you don't hear me talk about it much. I just go out and do what I want to do. I told myself I wouldn't cave."